Bees, Blossoms and Shad Fishing

 Chris and I spent some time along the fence line planting both blackberry and raspberry canes in a nice, almost straight row. The idea being to fill in some of the gaps between the lilac and apple trees that already exist along the fence line beside the cemetery. It's a pretty view, but it's also practical to use the space that's available and out of the main traffic and construction areas to plant permanent fruit bushes. We planted them by simply cutting a slit in the earth through the grass, placing a bare root in and then stepping on the sides to close the soil around the roots. The ground is damp but not soggy from the recent rain and the canes will be fairly easy to keep watered for the next few weeks.

Closer inspection of the apple trees along the roadside revealed a multitude of honey bees going about their business so if we are spared a hail storm we should have a good crop of apples come fall. It will be great to see if we can figure out the variety or if they are just a crab apples. Either way, they're useful and delicious.

Tonight we tried a different type of fishing. Shad are currently running in from the sea and into the rivers to spawn upstream, much like salmon do. The difference is that Shad are a very bony fish and that puts a lot of people off eating them. We caught a couple, especially after losing our shad darts (lures) in lots of snags under the water and we lost a few other fish too. In the end, after breaking my line a few times and running out of darts, I just threw on a trout fly with a spoon that was in my tackle box and it got a few nibbles too. I broke my line landing the one in the video, time for something a little stronger I think because these are fun to catch! Currently I'm using my trout rod and 4 lb line which is not meant for such a spunky fish as a Shad. Meghan had her line snap also and it was 6lb. Don't believe me? Here's proof! And special thanks go to Danny for taking us out, sharing a beautiful spot with us, and helping us un-snag line, hooks and land fish. You're a real gem my friend!